Not much is known yet about season 3 ofThe Mandalorian, but with Grogu off to train with Luke Skywalker, and Mando on his own, it’s likely the show will now shift focus onto Mandalore, Bo Katan, and the Darksaber. If that’s so, it’s unlikely the show will have time to fully explain Bo Katan’s backstory, much less go into the Darksaber’s previous appearances. But some of that information would make the next season ofThe Mandalorianmuch more enjoyable.
Fortunately, though much of the backstory fans will need to understand where the plot of the next season of the Disney+ hit is probably heading comes fromStar Wars: The Clone Wars, fans don’t need to consume the entirety of the 133 episodes of the show to prepare. Need doesn’t mean shouldn’t, though.Star Wars: The Clone Warsis a fantastic show, and a must for fans of the franchise. However, for expediency purposes, there are some specific episodes that can be watched separately. First, and most importantly, the twelfth episode of season 2 ofStar Wars: The Clone Wars, titled “The Mandalore Plot.”
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This episode marks the first appearance of the planet Mandalore, as well as the Darksaber. The planet, however, had previously appeared in the 1983 comic Star Wars 68, and the idea of it existed in early story concept forStar Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. Fans were always likely to get much more of Mandalore’s history in a series calledThe Mandalorian, so it’s interesting to pay attention to everything the animated series, in particular, have given us about Mandalore. The Darksaber, meanwhile, was close to making an appearance inSolo: A Star Wars Story, but they ultimately chose to use Darth Maul’s Rebel’s lightsaber. This means “The Mandalore Plot” is truly the place to start for backstorylooking forward to season 3ofThe Mandalorian.
The next two episodes in season 2 (“Voyage of Temptation” and “Duchess of Mandalore”) continue with the Darksaber/Mandalore storyline. The Darksaber doesn’t make many more appearances during the course ofStar Wars: The Clone Wars, though a few specific episodes to check out are “A Friend in Need,” “Eminence,” “Shades of Reason,” and “The Lawless.” The Darksaber does appears again inStar Wars: Rebels, particularly in the back half of season 3 and the season 4 premiere, starting with “Visions and Voices” in season 3 and ending with “Heroes of Mandalore.”
Mandalore itself continues to be mentioned, and in some cases, appear – via flashbacks or in the present – during the entire run ofStar Wars: The Clone Wars. Bo-Katan Kryze, meanwhile, also makes her first appearance inStar Wars: The Clone Wars, but it’s not till season 4.The storylines of Bo-Katan, the Darksaber and Mandalore are, of course, intrinsically tied. In fact, it could be said that the entirety of their appearances during the course of the show were all leading up to season seven ofStar Wars: The Clone Wars, which focuses on the Siege of Mandalore. The entire season is important backstory for the Bo-Katan that appears inThe Mandalorianseason 3.
The storylines developed inStar Wars: The Clone Warsare sure to be the backbone of some other shows set in theStar Warsuniverse. TheObi-Wan that fans will seein his standalone series lived through everything inStar Wars: The Clone Wars.Ahsoka Tano is a characterthat was first introduced inStar Wars: The Clone Wars.Not to mention,Star Wars: The Bad Batch, which is now streaming, also features characters first introduced duringStar Wars: The Clone Wars. Most of what fans need to know before Season 3 ofThe Mandalorian, and to follow many of theStar Warsproperties going forward, can be traced back toStar Wars: The Clone Wars.
Star Wars: Rebelsis also another interesting follow-up for people interested in more backstory. It isn’t set as early in the timeline – five years before the originalStar Warsfilm – or focuses on the right characters to be integral to the storyThe Mandalorianis telling, so there’s no need to rush to watch it. But fans ofStar Wars: The Clone Warswill find it full of Easter Eggs, and complex, interesting new character. Similarly, just as it’s happened with Clone Wars, it’s sure to become the basis for more stories to be told in the Star Wars universe.
Watching theStar Warsanimated series, and particularlyStar Wars: The Clone Wars, is essentialto understanding what’s to comeinThe Mandalorianseason 3. Fans don’t need to watch the full seven seasons of the show, the episodes mentioned here will suffice if all someone’s looking for is background information. However, for fans of Star Wars in general, andThe Mandalorianin particular,Star Wars: The Clone Warsis an absolutely binge-worthy delight. Plus, considering how many of the upcoming shows set in theStar Warsuniverse seem to be either focused onStar Wars: The Clone Warscharacters or drawing upon stuff that happened within the series, this is the best time to get started on the show. Soon, the list of episodes one needs to watch to understand an upcoming show might be up to 133.
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